Managing Cover Crops Profitably (3rd Ed. )

Managing Cover Crops Profitably (3rd Ed. )
Author: Andy Clark
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
Total Pages: 248
Release: 2008-07
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1437903797

Cover crops slow erosion, improve soil, smother weeds, enhance nutrient and moisture availability, help control many pests and bring a host of other benefits to your farm. At the same time, they can reduce costs, increase profits and even create new sources of income. You¿ll reap dividends on your cover crop investments for years, since their benefits accumulate over the long term. This book will help you find which ones are right for you. Captures farmer and other research results from the past ten years. The authors verified the info. from the 2nd ed., added new results and updated farmer profiles and research data, and added 2 chap. Includes maps and charts, detailed narratives about individual cover crop species, and chap. about aspects of cover cropping.

Conceptual Basis, Formalisations and Parameterization of the Stics Crop Model

Conceptual Basis, Formalisations and Parameterization of the Stics Crop Model
Author: Nadine Brisson
Publisher: Editions Quae
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2009-01-19
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 2759201694

The STICS crop model has been developed since 1996 at INRA in collaboration with other research and technical institutes. The model syntheses, illustrates and concretizes an important part of the French agronomic knowledge as a point of view on the field and cropping systems working. The formalisations of the STICS crop model presented in this book can be considered as references used in the framework of crop sciences. The book arrangement relies on the way the model designs the crop-soil system functioning, each chapter being devoted to a set of important functions such as growth initiation, yield onset, water uptake, transformation of organic matter etc. One chapter deals with the cropping system and long term simulations and the final chapter is about the involvement of the user in terms of option choices and parameterization. If this book is mainly intended for scientists who use the STICS model, it can also be useful for agronomists, crop modellers, students and technicians looking for elementary formalizations of the crop-soil system functioning.

Soil Management

Soil Management
Author: Jerry L. Hatfield
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2020-01-22
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0891188533

Degradation of soils continues at a pace that will eventually create a local, regional, or even global crisis when diminished soil resources collide with increasing climate variation. It's not too late to restore our soils to a more productive state by rediscovering the value of soil management, building on our well-established and ever-expanding scientific understanding of soils. Soil management concepts have been in place since the cultivation of crops, but we need to rediscover the principles that are linked together in effective soil management. This book is unique because of its treatment of soil management based on principles—the physical, chemical, and biological processes and how together they form the foundation for soil management processes that range from tillage to nutrient management. Whether new to soil science or needing a concise reference, readers will benefit from this book's ability to integrate the science of soils with management issues and long-term conservation efforts.

Cover Cropping in Vineyards

Cover Cropping in Vineyards
Author: Chuck A. Ingels
Publisher: University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources
Total Pages: 172
Release: 1998
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9781879906358

This guide features cutting-edge methods for using cover crops to enhance vineyard performance. Based on extensive research, this guide details technical and theoretical information on how cover crops affect vineyards and promote ecological stability. With how-to instructions for activities such as field application, this practical reference is a must-have for vineyard owners, managers, consultants, and pest control advisers.

Predicting Soil Erosion by Water

Predicting Soil Erosion by Water
Author: Kenneth G. Renard
Publisher:
Total Pages: 412
Release: 1997
Genre: Geophysical prediction
ISBN:

Introduction and history; Rainfall-runoff erosivity factor (R); Soil erodibility factor (K); Slope length and steepness factors (LS); Cover-management factor (C); Support practice factor (P); RUSLE user guide; Coversion to SI metric system; Calculation of EI from recording-raingage records; Estimating random roughness in the field; Parameter values for major agricultural crops and tillage operations.

Cover Cropping for Vegetable Production

Cover Cropping for Vegetable Production
Author: Richard Smith (University of California Cooperative Extension Advisor)
Publisher: University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources
Total Pages: 99
Release: 2011
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1601076797

The handbook describes primary cover crop species, including grasses, legumes, mustards and other cool-season and warm-season options. Photos, seeding details, winter vigor descriptions, nitrogen fixation and scavenging, weed suppression and nematode resistance are included for each species. In addition to assisting with crop selection, this handbook addresses the effects of cover cropping on water management, pest management and farm economics. For California growers, the handbook also discusses differences in cover crop use for the Central Valley, Desert and Coastal regions. Chapters include: Botany and Species Selection Agricultural Soil Ecology Water Management and Impacts on Water Quality Soil Nitrogen Fertility Management Weeds Soilborne Pathogens

Sustainable Intensification of Crop Production

Sustainable Intensification of Crop Production
Author: P. Parvatha Reddy
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 405
Release: 2016-11-17
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9811027021

This book outlines a new paradigm, Sustainable Intensification of Crop Production (SICP), which aims to produce more from the same area of land by increasing efficiency, reducing waste, conserving resources, reducing negative impacts on the environment and enhancing the provision of ecosystem services. The use of ecologically based management strategies can increase the sustainability of agricultural production while reducing off-site consequences. The book also highlights the underlying principles and outlines some of the key management practices and technologies – such as minimum soil disturbance; permanent organic soil covers; species diversification; selection of suitable cultivars, planting time, age and spacing; balanced plant nutrition; agro-ecological pest management; efficient water management; careful management of farm machinery; and integrated crop-livestock production – required to implement SICP. The green revolution (by using high-yielding crop varieties, mono-cropping, fertilization, irrigation, and pesticides) has led to enormous gains in food production and improved world food security. In many countries, however, intensive crop production has had negative impacts on production, ecosystems and the larger environment, putting future productivity at risk. In order to meet the projected demands of a growing population expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, farmers in the developing world must double food production, a challenge complicated by the effects of climate change and growing competition for land, water and energy. This book will be of immense value to all members of the scientific community involved in teaching, research and extension activities concerning sustainable intensification. The material can be used for teaching post-graduate courses, or as a useful reference guide for policy makers.